about puzzle quest continue

------------------------------------------------------------ -----------------
Story Quest: War Council Complete!
------------------------------------------------------------ -----------------

The Orcs will begin their preparations for war with Dhun-Kor. Of course, you
will need to prepare for war too. This means that you will need to perform
some sabotage in order to gain the upper hand in battle.

Info: Gruulkar is building a new weapon. You must find it and destroy it.

Places Unlocked: None

Completion:

In the village of Snake Fang, Gruulkar is building a new weapon. It’s a
catapult, but it's much more than that. It's a siege weapon that can hurl
Goblins a great distance. Of course, this would not be a good thing. No
one wants Goblins raining down on them, so make your way over to Snake Fang
and destroy the weapon. The Gobshooter can use the Besiege skill like a
normal catapult, which destroys a 3 by 3 grid on the board at random, but it
can also use the Hurl Goblin skill, which destroys a random gem and
multiplies it's effect times 20. This is bad if it somehow manages to hit a
+5 Skull, so be careful during the battle. Other than that and the magical
ability for Besiege to almost always hit a +5 Skull on the board, this
battle shouldn't be too hard. When you have completed this mission, make
your way back to Dhun-Kor and collect your reward.

Gruulkar is dead set on going to war and almost nothing is going to stop
him. Almost nothing. You will need to defeat Gruulkar one on one in battle
in order to stop the war from happening. Gruulkar has begun to advance his
armies towards Dhun-Kor. You won't be able to attack him straight on, but
you will be able to ambush him from a Scorpion Hole. There are quite a few
at Snake Fang, so make your way over there and hide in a Scorpion Hole.
Unfortunately for you, there is a Scorpion is inside the hole. Scorpions
can poison you, so be careful of that.

When the Scorpion is defeated, you will be able to hide in the hole and wait
for Gruulkar to wander past the hole and ambush him. Ambush Gruulkar and
challenge him to a battle.

+----------------------------------------------------------- ---------------+
| Boss Battle: Gruulkar |
| |
| Info: Gruulkar is an especially tough Orc, and has a shield that |
| increases his Battle skill every time he is hit. His Great Axe gives |
| him extra turns when doing damage. |
| |
| Gruulkar is the leader of the Orcs of Kor. |
| |
| Equipment: |
| Helmet and Crowns: Horned Helm |
| Adds +3 to Red Mana whenever your enemy casts a spell |
| Armor: Full Plate Armor |
| Gives a 100% chance to protect against 1 point of damage whenever |
| you receive 2 or more damage |
| Weapon: Great Axe |
| Gives a 50% chance of an extra turn whenever you do 5 or more |
| damage |
| Miscellaneous: Gruulkar's Shield |
| Adds +1 to your Battle skill whenever you receive 2 or more damage |
| |
| Skills: |
| Call the Horde |
| Destroys all Green and Red Gems. Adds +1 to Red Mana, Green Mana, |
| and Life Points for every gem destroyed |
| Headbutt |
| Destroys all Red Gems and your enemy loses 1 turn plus an |
| additional turn for every 8 Red Gems destroyed |
| Enrage |
| Adds your Red Mana total to your Battle skill for 8 turns. You |
| turn does not end after casting this spell |
| Throw Axe |
| Does 4 points of damage to enemy plus an additional +1 for every |
| Skull in play |
| |
| Tips: |
| Every time you deal damage to Gruulkar, his Battle skill will |
| increase, which means he will deal more damage to you the more you |
| deal damage to him. Also, casting a spell will give him Red Mana, |
| which is important to all of his skills and spells and when he deals |
| damage to you, odds are, he will get another turn because of his |
| Great Axe. His most annoying skill is his Headbutt skill, which |
| makes you lose turns. Also, Throw Axe will deal direct damage to |
| you. Gruulkar isn't as hard as Dugog was, so you should be able to |
| deal with Gruulkar without too many problems. Just keep attacking |
| Gruulkar with your most powerful attack spells or skill and you |
| shouldn't give him much of a chance to fight back, even if his Battle |
| Skill gets upped every time you attack him. |
+----------------------------------------------------------- ---------------+

When Gruulkar is defeated, you will need two things from him in exchange for
his life. The first thing is a full withdrawal of the Orcish hordes. The
second is more information in regards to the slavers. Apparently, a giant
Minotaur called the Mechataur is commanding them from a place called
Hornburg. The Mechataur is not an armored Minotaur, but a mechanical one.
When Gruulkar gives you this information, you tell him to get lost, but not
before taking his shield.

Info: You must dispose of a Dragon that has been caught in a Dragontrap
north of Dhun-Kor.

Places Unlocked: Dragonrealm

Completion:

You will speak with Khrona about moving on north to investigate the
Mechataur at Hornburg. Apparently, Hornburg is the mountains bordering a
place called the Realms of War, which doesn't sound like a very happy place.
Either way, finding your way into the area will be difficult. Khrona will
ask one more favor of you. Apparently, they have a Dragon that they need to
dispose of. The Dragon can be found in Northern Kor. Make your way to
there and you will see the Dragon caught in the Dragontrap developed by the
Dwarves. When you approach the Dragon, the Dragon will beg for his life.
The Dragon doesn't seem to be evil or harming the Dwarves, but simply
looking around for the other Dragons that have disappeared. The Dragon
agrees to help you if you help him. The Dragon, named Flicker, will
accompany you into the Dragonrealm, which is northeast of the Dragon Valley.
When you reach the Dragonrealm, search for Dragons. You won't find a
Dragon, but you will get jumped by a Dragon Spider. Dragon Spiders have the
Web ability, which can stun you for a few turns and has the Breath Fire
ability, which can deal direct damage to you. They can also poison you,
which can be annoying. While not as tough as a real Dragon, Dragon Spiders
can be a pain. When the Dragon Spider is defeated, you will have another
conversation with Flicker, which reveals nothing other than the fact that
Flicker has the whole sarcasm thing down pat.

Now that you are in the Dragonrealm, you should be able to search for a
couple of Dragons to find out some clues about their whereabouts. Either
way, your next mission will be to wake the elder Dragon, Kelthurax, which
doesn't sound like fun.

Info: You must attempt to wake Kelthurax who slumbers beneath the
Dragonrealm. He is the oldest Dragon in Etheria.

Places Unlocked: None

Completion:

Flicker says that you will need to wake up Kelthurax. Apparently, Kelthurax
has a bad reputation, so you will need to proceed with caution. Kelthurax's
lair is at Dragonrealm, so you will have to make some noise at this area to
get Kelthurax to wake up. Unfortunately, after making noise twice, you only
seem to have attracted the attention of a Wyvern. This Wyvern has a higher
Battle and Air Mastery, which means it is stronger than most Wyverns.
Still, you will have to worry about the Poison it can inflict and the Rend
skill, which deals direct damage along with allowing the Wyvern to take it's
turn. By now, you should be used to fighting Wyverns, so just deal with it
normally. When the Wyvern is defeated, Kelthurax wakes up, but not in a
good mood. He yells at you and Flicker for disturbing his sleep and proceed
to inform you that he doesn't care what happened to the other Dragons.

Now that Kelthurax doesn't want to deal with you (which is a good thing,
since him dealing with you probably involves eating you) and there are a
couple of clues to where the Dragons are at, you will need to continue your
investigation of the being known as the Mechataur.

Since you have done everything Flicker has asked from you, it's time for
Flicker to hold up his end of the bargain and assist you with getting the
Hornburg and deal with the being known as the Mechataur. Flicker will show
you the path, but the path is guarded by a Liche. Liches can create +5
Skulls on the board whenever you deal a lot of damage to them, which can
either be a good thing or a bad thing. Also, the Liche has the spell known
as Death Gaze, which creates Skulls on the board.

When the Liche is defeated, continue on to Hornburg. Here is where the
Mechataur is. Attack the monstrosity known as the Mechataur.

+----------------------------------------------------------- ---------------+
| Boss Battle: Mechataur |
| |
| Info: The Mechataur can Energize, healing large amounts of damage, and |
| can also use its Mechanical Axe to get extra turns when dealing |
| damage. |
| |
| Equipment: |
| Helmet and Crowns: Elemental Gem |
| Adds +2 to all of your Mana Reserves for each of Mana Reserves |
| that are full at the start of each of your turns |
| Armor: Iron Skin |
| Adds +1 to Green Mana when you are damaged and protects against 1 |
| point of damage when you receive 2 or more damage |
| Weapon: Mechanical Axe |
| Gives an extra turn whenever you do 5 or more damage |
| Miscellaneous: None |
| |
| Skills: |
| Charge! |
| Destroys a selected row of gems and does 5 points of damage. You |
| gain the effects of every gem destroyed |
| Energize |
| Adds +25 to your Life Points. Reduces your Mana Reserves to zero |
| |
| Tips: |
| The biggest pain in dealing with the Mechataur is his Energize skill |
| and his Mechanical Axe. His Energize skill will restore 25 points of |
| his Life Points at the expense of his Mana Reserves. However, since |
| he has the Elemental Gem and his Iron Skin gives him lots of Green |
| Mana, his Mana Reserves are normally either full or close to full. |
| His Mechanical Axe will allow him to take an extra turn whenever he |
| deal damage to you, which is also a bad thing. However, this battle |
| should not be as hard as Dugog was, since you should, by this time, |
| have a high level spell or skill that should do in the Mechataur. |
| Just avoid leaving damage on the board and the Mechataur should be |
| placed out of commission in no time. |
+----------------------------------------------------------- ---------------+

When the Mechataur is broken, you will interrogate the giant monstrosity.
Unfortunately, talking to the Mechataur is like talking to a...machine...
which means you won't get much out of it. Either way, the Mechataur is out
of commission and now it's time to move on to the Realms of War. At least
you get his Gem in the process.

With the defeat of the Mechataur, there is still many questions left
unanswered. What are the connections between the human slaves, the Orcish
invasion, and the mission Dragons? The Realms of War, controlled by the
Minotaurs, may just have the answers. For now, make your way to the area
known as the Horned Temple and be prepared to deal with Minotaurs...and lots
of them.

Info: You have followed the trail of the Orcish Slavers to a huge Horned
Temple. You must enter the Temple to learn more.

Places Unlocked: The Pike

Completion:

The moment you accept the quest, you will have to approach the temple. You
will get stopped by a Minotaur named Tauron Flamebite. He prevents you
from entering the temple because you are unclean. Tauron will tell you to
travel to an area called The Pike. The Pike will be blocked off by a
Minotaur. Minotaurs can use the Charge skill to get rid of an entire row
and deal damage to you. Also, if they deal damage to you, they have a 50%
chance of getting an extra turn because of their Great Axe. You should be
able used to fighting Minotaurs by now, so this shouldn't be a problem.
When you have defeated the Minotaur and reach The Pike, you will find the
heads of many races on pikes. Apparently, this was supposed to be some kind
of warning. Make your way back to the Horned Temple and talk to Tauron
again. Tauron will not have expected you to return, but you somehow manage.
Tauron will then inform you that he doesn't know about the Minotaur slavers
and that the Firewalkers are a different type of Minotaur. Tauron sends out
a Firewalker Shaman to take you on to prove that they are different. You
will have to face off with another Minotaur. This Minotaur has the Fire
Bolt spell and the Rain of Fire spell. This shouldn't make the Minotaur an
different from the other Minotaurs you have defeated, so just treat him as
normal. When the Firewalker is defeated, Tauron is impressed, but you still
cannot enter the Temple. You will need to become purified before you can
enter the Temple.

Info: You must undergo a ritual cleansing by the Minotaur Firewalkers.
Once you have done this, they will agree to talk to you.

Places Unlocked: Volcano (disappears eventually)

Completion:

In order to gain access to the Horned Temple and to be able to talk to
people with knowledge about what is going on, you will have to undergo the
ritual to become a Firewalker initiate. The trial is to go up to the
Volcano and fight a Fire Elemental. The Volcano is located northeast of the
Horned Temple. When you reach the Volcano, you will face off with a Fire
Elemental. Fire Elementals can use the spell Wall of Fire to protect itself
from damage and Fire Siphon to drain your Red Mana and heal itself. Wall of
Fire is very annoying because the Fire Elemental likes to horde Red Mana.
When you manage to defeat the Fire Elemental, make your way back to the
Horned Temple and talk to Tauron again. Tauron sees a transformation in you
and declares you a Minotaur Firewalker, which gives you an award. Now you
can inquire about the slaves that have been taken from your homelands. You
learn about Sartek and Lord Bane and what it takes for Sartek to become
revived. You also learn that Lord Bane is currently in control of the
Realms of War and seem to be behind the Slavers. Finally, you hear about
Minogoth and where he is located at. Tauron says that the best way to save
your comrades is to piece Sartek back together.

Now that you are officially a Firewalker, you will need to participate in the
tasks that the Firewalkers perform. Namely, piecing together Lord Sartek and
reviving him for the impending rematch with Lord Bane. The Firewalkers have
most of the pieces of the God. You just need to find the remaining ones.
First up are the Horns of Sartek.

Info: You must challenge a Minotaur Tribe in an attempt to reclaim the
Horns of Sartek.

Places Unlocked: None

Completion:

The moment you accept this quest, you will be introduced to an elder
Minotaur Firewalker named Sunspear. He will become one of your companions
and will guide you through the process of collecting the pieces of the god
known as Sartek. Even though he is old, he is very wise and will help you
in battles against Minotaurs, which you will run into quite frequently from
now on. He will inform you that the Horns of Sartek can be found in the
city of Tusk. In order to get the Horns, you will have to travel to the
city and challenge the Minotaurs there. Winner takes all in Minotaur
society, so make your way over to the city of Tusk, which is northeast of
The Pike. When you reach the city of Tusk, Sunspear will give you some
knowledge about Minotaur society. After this speech, challenge the
Minotaurs for the Horns of Sartek. You should be used to fighting Minotaurs
by now, so you should know that they have the Charge! skill and Great Axes,
neither of which is too much to worry about. Also, since you now have
Sunspear as your companion, you will gain some Red Mana at the start of the
battle. If you are a Warrior or a Mage, this can be a good thing, since
both of those classes rely on Red Mana. When the first Minotaur is
defeated, you will have to challenge the leader of the Minotaurs of this
area. The Chieftain Minotaur is just like any other Minotaur except for the
fact that he has the Cleave skill, which can destroy all Yellow Gems and
deals damage to you based on what is destroyed. Also, the Chieftain does
have some armor on. This shouldn't provide too many problems for you, so
simply treat this as a normal Minotaur battle. When the Chieftain Minotaur
is defeated, you will obtain the Horns of Sartek. Apparently, this is the
93rd and 94th pieces of Sartek with only 7 more pieces left to go, so you
don't have to find all 100 pieces of the God.

Info: You must obtain the Eye of Sartek from the Elves and return it to the
Horned Temple.

Places Unlocked: None

Completion:

You will have to get one of the Eyes of Sartek from the Elves of Silvermyr.
The Elves there use the Eye of Sartek on top of the Tree of Seeing as a way
to see around their kingdom and look for approaching danger. Hopefully
asking Queen Titania nicely will make her give up the Eye of Sartek. If you
have completed the Side Quest Arioc Blockade, you should have a quick path
from the Horned Temple to Silvermyr. If not, you will probably have to take
the long way around. When you reach Silvermyr, the Queen will hear your
request, but will deny you the Eye of Sartek. Looks like the only way you
are going to get the Eye of Sartek is by stealing it. You will have to
climb the Tree of Seeing, but in the middle of the climb, you will get
attacked by an Elven Guard. Elven Guards are very well balanced in their
skills and their equipment. Elven Guards have equipment that will increase
their Mana Reserves. Also, they have the Archery skill, which will deal
direct damage to you based on your Yellow Mana, and they have the Entangle
spell, which can stun you. Finally, they have the Gemberry spell, which
heals their life points based on their Blue Mana. If you have Princess
Serephine on your team, she will provide you with some aid in helping you
dispatch the guard. When the Elven Guard is defeated, you will climb to the
top of the Tree of Seeing. However, when you try to take the Eye of Sartek,
you will get stopped by a Griffon. Griffons have a dangerous combination of
skills. Their Soar skill can turn all Green and Blue Gems into Yellow Gems,
which will set up their Death Dive skill, which deals direct damage to you
based on the number of Yellow Gems on the board. However, if you have the
Cleave skill or any other skills that deal with Yellow Gems on the board,
you should be able to quickly dispatch of the Griffon. Even if you don't
have any skills dealing with Yellow Gems, the Griffon should not be a hard
opponent. When the Griffon is defeated, you will obtain the Eye of Sartek.
However, blocking your exit out of Silvermyr is another Elven Guard. I
mean, after all, you are now on the Silvermyr ten most wanted list. You'd
think there would be more Guards wanting your head. This Guard is the same
as the one you've fought already, so just follow the same procedure. When
the guard is defeated, make your way back to the Horned Temple and complete
your mission. Tauron is happy that you have the Eye, but you're not so
happy about the theft. Some sacrifices have to be made to save the world...

Info: You must defeat a Minotaur Slaver who wields the legendary Tail of
Sartek as a whip. Then you must return the Tail to the Horned Temple.

Places Unlocked: None

Completion:

The next piece of Sartek is currently in the hands of a Minotaur Slaver. It
is in the city of Blackhoof which is in the Realms of War. Blackhoof is
west of Tusk, so make your way over there and challenge the Minotaur Slaver.
The Slaver has the Tail of Sartek as his weapon. He wields it like a Whip,
which will deal 1 to 10 points of damage to you whenever he gains 3 or more
Red Mana. Other than that, he is a regular Minotaur. Other than keeping
Red Mana away from him, there should be nothing else you need to worry
about. When the Minotaur Slaver is defeated, return back to the Horned
Temple and return the Tail to Tauron.

Info: You must obtain the Tooth of Sartek from the Gnoll Chieftain in Hyaan
and return it to Tauron.

Places Unlocked: None

Completion:

Be lucky that you only need one Tooth and not the entire set. Tauron was
nice enough to find the rest for you. Sunspear informs you that the Tooth
is currently in possession of a Gnoll Chieftain. The Gnoll city of Hyaan
can be found southwest of The Pike. There will be a Gnoll standing in the
way of Hyaan, so you will have to defeat it first. Gnolls can be annoying
because their Accessory, the Gnoll Pack, makes them stronger each time they
gain Gold or Experience. Also, when they deal damage, they gain a little
bit of life. Finally, they have the Sense Blood skill, which destroys Red
and Blue Gems and gives the Gnoll Gold for it, which allows them to become
stronger because of their Gnoll Pack, and they have the Hide skill, which
doubles all damage they deal while Hidden. When you have gotten through the
Gnoll, make your way to Hyaan. When you try to visit the Chieftain, a Gnoll
will stop you. The Gnolls name is Staf and he wants to become leader of the
Gnolls. In order to do that, he will need the old Chieftain to be defeated,
which was what you were going to do anyways. Staf says that if you defeat
the old Chieftain, he will give you the Tooth as a thank you. When you are
done talking to Staf, challenge the Chieftain to a battle. This Gnoll will
be just like the Gnoll you've fought before except this one is tougher that
normal and he is equipped with the Tooth of Sartek as his accessory instead
of the Gnoll Pack. The Tooth of Sartek will increase the damage done to you
when the Gnoll Chieftain matches skulls. Finally, he has more skills than
most Gnolls do, like Sneak Attack and Stun. Sneak Attack can get annoying
because it deals direct damage to you without having to lose a turn for your
opponent. You should be able to defeat this Gnoll pretty handily by this
time, so when the Gnoll Chieftain falls, you get the Tooth of Sartek from
Staf. Return to Tauron and give him the Tooth, along with information on
the state of Hyaan.

Info: You must travel into Southern Kor and find an Ogre Mage that has made
the Spine of Sartek into a war banner.

Places Unlocked: None

Completion:

The Spine is kind of important for every day living and movement. Sunspear
knows where the Spine is and he is giving the task of getting the Spine to
you. An Ogre Mage has the Spine of Sartek. Unfortunately for you, the Ogre
Mage is in Southern Kor in the city of Gluk. It is a long journey and there
should be many random enemies along the way. When you finally reach Gluk,
battle the Ogre Mage. Ogre Mages can create a +5 Skull whenever you deal
damage to them. Also, they can create Wildcards with their Wild Magic
spell. Finally, this Ogre Mage is in possession of the Spine of Sartek,
which adds +20 to his Morale skill, meaning this Ogre Mage has a lot of Life
Points. However, this should not be too difficult of a battle for you, even
though Sunspear warned you that this might be difficult. When the Ogre Mage
is defeated, begin your trek back north to the Horned Temple. When you
reach the Horned Temple, give the Spine of Sartek to Tauron. Tauron will be
overjoyed at you returning the Spine of Sartek.

Three more pieces left. If you put together Sartek, does that mean that a
God will owe you a huge favor? I mean, after all, being put back together
should count as something major that you should receive huge compensation
for.

Info: Somewhere in the Realms of War a Minotaur King has hidden the Ribs of
Sartek. You must find them.

Places Unlocked: None

Completion:

The programmers of this game could have been mean and told you to find each
individual rib for Sartek. Instead, you just simply have to find the entire
ribcage, which is still intact. A Minotaur King has fashioned the Ribs of
Sartek into a battle armor. It seems like each piece of Sartek is good for
some type of fashion accessory. Anyways, Sunspear tells you that he does
not know where the Minotaur King is, so you will have to hunt throughout the
entire Realms of War to find him. There will be shining stars at The Pike,
Weret, Blackhoof, and Giants' Walk. At each of these places, you will have
to search for the Ribs of Sartek. If you do not find the Ribs, you will
have to continue on and search at the next area. The place where the Ribs
are at is random. When you finally find the Ribs of Sartek, you will be
challenged by a Minotaur King. The Minotaur King is wearing the Ribs of
Sartek as armor. The Ribs of Sartek protects against 5 points of damage
whenever the Minotaur King receives 10 or more points of damage. Other than
that, you simply just have to deal with things that the Minotaur Kings have,
which is the Great Axe, the Charge! skill, and the Berserk Rage spell. Just
like fighting a stronger version of a Minotaur. If you have Drong in your
party after you have defeated the Minotaur King, he will try to take a bite
out of the Ribs of Sartek. These aren't barbecue ribs, but I don't think
Drong cares. Either way, you promise Drong that the next God you guys run
across, Drong can take a nice bite out of him. Hopefully your words won't
come back to haunt you... When the Minotaur King is defeated, make your way
back to the Horned Temple. Tauron is starting to get really excited at all
the pieces of Sartek you have brought back.

Info: You must find a Knight in the Borderlands who has had the Crest of
Sartek mounted onto his helm, then return to Tauron with the Crest.

Places Unlocked: None

Completion:

This time, you inform Sunspear of where the next journey should be. He
tells you that the Crest of Sartek is located at a place called the Red
Tower and you tell him it is in a city called Maethelburg. So now, you must
travel all the way to Maethelburg and talk to a Knight there. This will be
another long journey with lots of random monsters in your way. When you get
to Gallia, if you have Darkhunter in your party, he will inform you that he
still cannot enter Maethelburg. He will then finally agree to tell you his
story. Apparently, he fell in love with a girl named Liandra. Liandra is
the daughter of Lord Greythane. Remember Liandra? If you have been doing
the Darkhunter Side Quests, you will already know Liandra is currently
Undead. Liandra, before she became evil and all dead, she was betrothed to
Darkhunter. Unfortunately, she became Undead when Darkhunter wanted to kill
off an Undead Sorcerer and failed to do so, allowing Liandra to die and
become Undead. Either way, you cannot enter Maethelburg with Darkhunter in
your party. So, for now, take him out of your party. He will let you know
that he will be in Gallia when you want to pick him up again. When
Darkhunter is not in your party anymore, make your way to Maethelburg and
visit the Red Tower. Talk to Lord Greythane and tell him you are looking
for a certain Knight. When you describe the Crest he has, Lord Greythane
will tell you that you are looking for Sir Borik. He is no longer a
Riverguard, but Lord Greythane tells you that you can find him in
Drakenburg. Make your way back to Gallia and pick up Darkhunter again and
then travel west to Drakenburg. When you reach Drakenburg, challenge Sir
Borik to a battle. Sir Borik is a very powerful Knight. He has very good
armor on and the Crest of Sartek he has on his head will increase his
Resistances every time he matches up 4 or 5 Gems. Also, he has the Revenant
spell which increase his Battle skill and has the Favor spell which can heal
his life. This is all on top of the Thrust and Divine Right skills Knights
normally have. Finally, Sir Borik has a high Life Points total and high
Battle, all of which will make a tough battle. When you defeat Sir Borik,
you get his helm with the Crest of Sartek as your prize. You will now need
to head back to the Horned Temple, which is still a long journey. However,
when you leave Drakenburg, another Knight will be waiting for you to fight
you. This Knight is just a normal Knight, so you should be able to defeat
this Knight relatively easily compared to Sir Borik. When that Knight is
defeated, continue your journey to the Horned Temple. When you reach the
Horned Temple, Tauron will tell you the location of the last piece of
Sartek. It is in the Horned Citadel of Othar.

Info: You must steal the final piece of Sartek, his huge skull, from
Minogoth, in the Horned Citadel of Othar.

Places Unlocked: Othar

Completion:

Minogoth, the Minotaur that seems to be running the show for Lord Bane in
the Realms of War, currently has the Skull of Sartek in his possession to
prevent you from rebuilding the God. Minogoth apparently cannot be
completed defeated at this time. If he is defeated, he will just rise up
again because he is Undead. Undead are annoying like that. While you are
fighting Minogoth, the other Firewalkers plan to steal the Skull away from
Minogoth. Sounds easy enough to be a distraction. Othar is north of
Blackhoof, so make your way over to there. After the long journeys you have
been going on, this should be a welcome easy short travel. When you reach
Othar, if you have Flicker in your party, he will do a fly by of Othar and
inform you of what is going on inside of the Citadel. He tells you that
Minogoth is all over the Skull of Sartek and that you will not get it
without going through Minogoth first. When you enter the Horned Citadel,
Minogoth will talk big about eating you and then turning you into a slave.
In the end, this conflict must be settled with violence as you take on the
Undead Minogoth.

+----------------------------------------------------------- ---------------+
| Boss Battle: Minogoth |
| |
| Info: This Minotaur Doomknight can Charge like a bull and manipulate |
| Skulls like the Undead. He also destroys all Purple Stars whenever |
| matching 4 or 5 of a kind. |
| |
| Equipment: |
| Helmet and Crowns: Skull of Minogoth |
| Destroys all Purple Stars, giving full effect for each one, |
| whenever you match 4 or 5 gems |
| Armor: Armor of Minogoth |
| Protects against 1 point of damage whenever you receive 2 or more |
| damage, and adds +15% to Earth Resistance |
| Weapon: Axe of Doom |
| Adds +1 damage and destroys all Red Skulls whenever you do 3 or |
| more damage |
| Miscellaneous: Full Plate Boots |
| Gives a 100% chance to protect against 1 point of damage whenever |
| you receive 2 or more damage |
| |
| Skills: |
| Charge! |
| Destroys a selected row of gems and does 5 points of damage. You |
| gain the effects of every gem destroyed |
| Flaming Skulls |
| Turns Green Gems into Skulls and Blue Gems into Red Gems |
| Wake the Dead |
| Turns 1 Skull into 1 +5 Skull for every 5 Green Mana. After gems |
| are transformed, the turn ends |
| |
| Tips: |
| Minogoth comes equipped with some serious equipment. By far, his |
| Armor of Minogoth might provide the most headaches, since it |
| increases his Earth Resistance by a lot at the start of battle. If |
| you rely on any spells that use Green Mana, you might not be able to |
| land those spells very often. Luckily, the Resistance caps after a |
| while. Also, his Axe of Doom combos very well with his Wake the Dead |
| spell. If he uses the Wake the Dead spell, try not to let him match |
| any Skulls until you can clear the board of some of the +5 Skulls. |
| Finally, every time he matches up 4 or 5 Gems, all of the Purple |
| Stars will disappear, meaning he is anti-Knight. Hopefully, if you |
| are playing as a Knight, you can set up your loop combos before |
| Minogoth gets rid of all the Purple Stars on the board (at least, you |
| should be able to by this time almost get off the loop combo on the |
| first couple of turns). By this time, you should know what is your |
| best skills and combos to use against most enemies, so throw out your |
| best loops and spells to take down the Undead Minotaur. |
+----------------------------------------------------------- ---------------+

When the Undead Minotaur goes down, you will interrogate Minogoth. He is
more talkative than the Mechataur. Minogoth informs you that Lord Bane gets
all the slaves and metal that Minogoth collects, but won't tell you any more
than that. At least you manage to grab the Skull of Sartek before Minogoth
can recover. You also steal the Armor off of his body, which is a nice
prize added on. When you return the Skull to Tauron, Tauron agrees to clear
out a path for you to get to Lord Bane.

The Firewalkers put Lord Sartek back together and prepare the ritual to
awaken their God. Then, when Lord Sartek rose up, he defeated Minogoth in
Othar and the rest of Lord Bane's forces in the Realms of War. However, Lord
Bane is still out there, scheming away and continuing his plans.

Tauron will see you off on your journey into Lord Bane's territory, the
Realms of Death. Tauron marks off the path to Lord Bane's Citadel on your
map. Unfortunately for you, when you reach Gornak's Gap, Lord Bane will
make his first appearance to you in person. Lord Bane tells you to go away.
So if he is a God and all that, why is he telling you to go away instead of
just smiting you? It's probably because he is afraid of you. Lord Bane
sends a Doomknight after you to do his dirty work. Also, a blizzard will
cover up the path to Bane's Citadel. Definitely afraid of you. Take on the
Doomknight that Bane has left for you to play with. Doomknights are Undead
and have the Wake the Dead spell. Also, they have a combo using their
Burial spell. The Burial spell will turn all Skulls and Gold Coins into
Green Gems. With this, the Doomknight can possibly get more Green Mana,
which powers up their Unholy Lance, which deals more damage the more Green
Mana the Doomknights have, and powers up their Sword of Bane spell, which
deals direct damage to you based on the Doomknight's Green Mana. Also,
their armor increases their Earth Resistance, which means that spells using
Green Mana have a chance of being resisted by them. A powerful foe indeed,
but you should be even more powerful. I mean, after all, you just scared a
God off. When the Doomknight is defeated, Sunspear will inform you that the
blizzard is too rough to go through and that you will have to find another
way to get to Bane's Citadel. Make your way back to Othar and talk to
Tauron. Tauron tells you that there is another way to get to the Realms of
Death, but it is through the Gnoll lands of Hyaan and then through the High
Elves lands.

Lord Bane is hiding in his own realm. However, there is another way to reach
him. It is through the realms of the High Elves. Maybe these Elves will
like you more than the last nation of Elves. Well, you did steal stuff from
them...so they have their reasons...

Info: You must travel to the Ruins of Ylarie in the Northern Tundra and
seek help from the High Elves who guard the remaining two passes into
Lord Bane's realm.

Places Unlocked: Eldros' Tower, Ylarie

Completion:

Tauron gives you directions to the realm of the High Elves. The High Elves
live on the Northern Tundra in the ruins of Ylarie. First, make your way to
Hyaan. Once you reach Hyaan, you will have to head west of there to Ylarie.
There should be a Wight that tries to block your path to Eldros' Tower.
Wights are annoying in the fact that they can steal your Red Mana and turn
it into Blue Mana for them using their Wightblades. With this Blue Mana,
they can use the spell Spectral Force, which stuns you for a couple of
turns. When the Wight is vanquished, make your way to Eldros' Tower. You
will run into a female High Elf Dragonknight. She will stop you and
question your intentions for wanting to go into the Realms of Death. She
decides to escort you to Ylarie. However, in the path of Ylarie is a Liche.
When you damage a Liche, a +5 Skull will appear randomly on the board.
Also, they have a spell called Death Gaze, which will cut your Life Points
in half and randomly create Skulls on the board. Not very fun at all. When
the Liche is out of the way, you will reach Ylarie. The High Elf
Dragonknight, named Elistara will show you a tour of her home, which is in
ruins. Apparently, she has all but given up the fight, but you haven't.
The slaves you were trying to rescue are now the Undead you fight and the
metal you were trying to retrieve is now weapons for Lord Bane's army.
Well, since you can't save people, you might as well get rid of the person
who is doing all of this.

Lord Bane's Undead army has been advancing upon the ruins of Ylarie for some
time now. Apparently, they are going to make another push again. Ylarie is
important for reaching Lord Bane's Citadel, so you will need to defend the
city.

Info: You must help the High Elves defend Ylarie against waves of Undead
attackers.

Places Unlocked: Eldros' Tower, Ylarie

Completion:

You first need to try to convince Elistara that the fight against Bane isn't
over yet. To convince her, you will need to defend Ylarie from the Undead.
Also, Ylarie is important to getting to the passes to reach Bane's Citadel,
so defending Ylarie is strategically important also. First, you will need
to defend Ylarie against a Zombie. Zombies can inflict Disease upon you
with their attacks. Furthermore, their Eat Skulls spell will increase their
Battle for each Skull eaten. The Zombie shouldn't be too hard to take down,
but this is merely the first wave. The second wave is a Wight. Wights can
be a pain because they can drain your Red Mana with their Wightblades and
convert them to Blue Mana for them. With that Blue Mana, they can case the
Spectral Force spell, which will stun you for a few turns. When the Wight
is defeated, you will tell Elistara that you are winning. However, she is
still pessimistic about the whole deal. The final creature that you will
need to defend against is a Doomknight. You should remember fighting one of
these before when Bane blocked your path with the blizzard. Simply keep an
eye on the Doomknight's Green Mana to avoid taking too much damage from the
Sword of Bane spell and their Unholy Lances. When the Doomknight is
defeated, you apparently get cocky and start to brag to Darkhunter about
your victories. Darkhunter tells you that an Arkliche may be behind the
attacks. Apparently, the Arkliche was the creature that killed Liandra.
Either way, the Arkliche is your fourth foe. Arkliches can create +5 Skulls
on the board every time you attack them and can randomly create a Skull on
their turn. Also, they can drain your Experience points and can use the
spell Soul Swap, which switches your Mana Reserves with their Mana Reserves.
They also have a high Fire Resistance to stop your spells. Finally, you
must be wary of their Death Gaze spell, which will half your Life Points.
This foe is basically the top of the food chain when it comes to the Undead.
If you manage to down the Arkliche, Elistara becomes convinced that maybe
you might be able to turn the tides of the war against Bane.

There are two passes into Bane's Realm of Death. You must recapture one of
those passes right now to prevent Bane's army from entering your territory
and giving you a way into his territory. There is an Arkliche defending
Skullguard Keep, but it should be like just like the time you knocked off
the first one. Skullguard Keep is north of Ylarie, so make your way over to
there. If you have Darkhunter in your party, you will find out that the
Arkliche here is the one that killed Darkhunter's betrothed, Liandra. In
order to recapture the Keep, you will need to defeat this Arkliche. It's
just like the first Arkliche you fought, so be careful of its Death Gaze and
Soul Swap. When the Arkliche is defeated, you will learn from Elistara that
you will be a honorary member of the Skullguard. Elistara remembers the
first time Lord Bane was defeated, which was six hundred years ago.
Apparently, High Elves live forever. You learn that one of your ancestors
single handedly defeated Lord Bane. Lord Bane has good reason to fear you
because he's been knocked off by your family once.

Info: You must gather some herbs for the High Elven Mages who need them to
cast a spell of farseeing.

Places Unlocked: Bonebridge

Completion:

Elistara informs you that the High Elven Mages want to look into Lord Bane's
territory using their magic. However, in order to do so, they need some
herbs in Lord Bane's territory. Elistara also tells you about a creature
known as the Arboleth. Arboleths are one of Lord Bane's experiments gone
wrong. They are a twisted mass of misfortune and have a high resistance to
magic. The area you need to get to is the Bonebridge, which is north of
Skullguard Keep. When you reach the Bonebridge and search for the herbs,
you get jumped by an Arboleth. Arboleths know the spells Wild Magic, which
creates Wildcards at random on the board, Chaos Bolt, which deals direct
damage to you based on a random Mana Reserve, and Consume Mana, which
destroys all the Gems of a certain color and gives the Arboleth that Mana.
Also, they have a 10% magic resistance across the board, so they can be hard
to hit with spells that span multiple colors. Finally, their equipment, the
Chaos Skin, will heal themselves whenever you cast a spell. Besides all of
that, it's just plain ugly and needs to be put down. When you have defeated
the Arboleth, you will obtain the first set of herbs the High Elven Mages
want. If you have Sunspear in your party, he will make an observation about
the Arboleths. You will need to now search for the second set of herbs,
which is in the same area. This time, you will get jumped by a Liche.
After fighting off the Arboleth, the Liche should seem pretty tame and easy.
When you have the second set of herbs, make your way back to Ylarie and
complete your mission. Elistara will inform you that the Arboleths are
byproducts of Lord Bane's creations and there have been more of them lately,
which means Lord Bane has been producing a lot more Undead.

If you have been doing all the Side Quests up until now, you should end up
finding your ninth companion in the form of Elistara. However, you can only
have eight companions with you. The first time I went through the game, I
left Darkhunter off of my party. The second time, I left Patch off of my
team. I think neither of them have any more Side Quests after you finish the
Liandra side story and find a safe place for Patch's treasure, but I'm not
100% sure on either count. Either way, Elistara is a good member to have on
your team because she adds Water Resistance and any form of Spell Resistance
is good. When you are finished rounding out your party, move on to the next
task at hand when dealing with Lord Bane.

Info: You must find and defeat the three Generals of Lord Bane's army, evil
Sorcerers who are preparing his army of Undead.

Places Unlocked: Graww, Sea of Ice

Completion:

In order to cripple Lord Bane's army, you must take out the three generals
helping to create and lead his army of Undead. If you manage to take out
these three Necromancers, the Undead army will be unable, for now, to attack
Skullguard Keep, which seems to be their first target. Unfortunately, even
if you manage to defeat the Necromancers, they will probably become
Arkliches, which is no better. However, this delay might be what you need
to get to Lord Bane before he can take Skullguard Keep. The first of Lord
Bane's Necromancers is at the Bonebridge. Head over there and fight the
Necromancer. Of course, the Necromancer tries to make you not kill him, but
merely think of him begging for his miserable life and move on with the
stabbing. Necromancers have equipment and spells that will drain your Mana
Reserves. Their Sorceror's Cloak and Necrotic Staff will drain your Mana
every time you damage the Necromancer or cast a spell. Their Dark Bolt and
Mana Burn also drain your Mana, with the Dark Bolt inflicting Blind as well.
Finally, their Bonefire Helm, Ring of Earth, and Burial spell are designed
to up the Necromancer's Green Mana so that their Bone Avatar spell will up
their Battle skill by a whole lot. Luckily, the only thing you don't have
to worry about when dealing with Necromancers is direct damage. Try to get
off a powerful spell as soon as you can, as you don't want your Mana to be
drained by the Necromancer. Unfortunately, if you are playing a class the
depends on loops, this might be a difficult battle, as casting a spell will
drain your Mana. When this Necromancer is defeated, you will need to move
on to the next one. The next Necromancer is at the Lake of Blood. Like the
last Necromancer, this one wants to talk before his death. It fights the
same way as the first one, so just use the same tactics as before. The
final Necromancer is at the Sea of Ice. Apparently, talking trash before
death is a common trait among Necromancers. Defeat this one like you have
the other two. When the final Necromancer is defeated, Lord Bane will
personally talk to you again. You give Lord Bane the chance to surrender,
but he refuses. Talk about missing your opportunity to save your hide. The
good guy always wins.

Info: You must enter Bane's Citadel and make your way to his throne room,
ready to confront him.

Places Unlocked: None

Completion:

Lord Bane will inform you of how he creates his Undead. He uses a device
called the Wheel of Pain that tortures a creature so badly that when they
die, they rise up as Undead. In order to put a stop to Lord Bane's madness,
you will need to defeat the God himself. Confront Lord Bane and fight him.